Judging by the way this season has panned out so far, this clash can be considered nothing less than a battle of the Titans. Pep Guardiola’s Man City and Antonio Conte’s Chelsea have been two of the shining stars this season as they have powered through the majority of their opponents. Chelsea currently sit top of the Premier league but are just one point ahead of City who are sitting 3
rd behind Liverpool on goal difference. If City are able to pull a win they will swiftly move to the top of the log above their opponents.
City have come off a torrid run in October with an unbeaten run of 6 games throughout November. Their last 3 home games, however, have ended level and they will need to do a lot of work to improve on that against an on form Chelsea side. Although they have seemed unbeatable at times, City have not quite settled under Pep in all aspects of their game and there are almost always flaws in their performances. They have conceded in 11 of their 13 league games this season, only 3 teams have kept a worse clean sheet record this season and we imagine that Chelsea will not struggle to find the back of the net at the Etihad. Sergio Aguero will be key for the Citizens. The Argentinian netted a hat-trick the last time these sides met in the league and will be looking to add to his already impressive tally of 10 league goals this season.
In terms of team news, City will keep an eye on Raheem Sterling who suffered a knock midweek against Burnley. Silva, Stones and De Bruyne will all be hoping to earn recalls to the squad while Yaya Toure is expected to be edged out again by Fernandinho and Gundogan even after his impressive return. Kompany will remain sidelined until the New Year.
Chelsea are a team reborn under Antonio Conte. The London side have won 7 straight Premier League games and have conceded just 1 goal in those 7 games. Although the Blues have had a good run and are sitting top of the table, it is hard to think of a team that they have played who are at the level of City under Guardiola and it is going to be a tough game for them going in. Conte’s 3-4-3 formation has been almost unstoppable this season but there is absolutely no doubt that Pep and city have studied it to the tee and it may just be time for Conte to switch things up. Diego Costa is going to be key for Chelsea this weekend and is going to need to show up in fine form in order to provide that attacking threat that he is more than capable of. A game like this can get excessively heated and the Spaniard is going to need to keep his cool if he wants to make an impact.
Chelsea will be without John Terry while John Obi Mikel’s muscular injury will be watched closely. Besides for that, Conte is expected to field an unchanged line-up for the 7
th game running.
Whatever the outcome, we are in for a true clash of the titans which will without a doubt bring some exhilarating moments. A match like this is extremely important to the overall status of the league and many managers will be watching as the weekend opener gets underway.
Man City vs Chelsea Stats
- Man City have won their last 3 home encounters with Chelsea
- Man City have not lost in any of their last 14 home matches.
- Costa and Aguero each have 10 goals
- Diego Costa has the best minutes to goal ratio in Chelsea’s Premier league history – 134 Min per goal
- Chelsea’s best away record is against Man City – 11 away wins
Man City vs Chelsea Odds (At the time of writing)
Man City: 2.14 Draw: 3.55 Chelsea: 3.43
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